


i saw forever in my never

by savanting



Series: The Phantoms' Songbook [4]
Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: ALL THE FLUFF, Canon Compliant, Confessions, Crushes, F/M, Falling In Love, First Love, Fluff, Mutual Longing, Non-Sexual Intimacy, One Shot, One Shot Collection, Romance, Short One Shot, cuteness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-07
Updated: 2020-11-07
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:54:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,055
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27429025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/savanting/pseuds/savanting
Summary: Luke thinks he's just discussing lyrics with Julie, but she might have other things on her mind. One-Shot.
Relationships: Julie Molina & Luke Patterson, Julie Molina/Luke Patterson
Series: The Phantoms' Songbook [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1925812
Comments: 10
Kudos: 255





	i saw forever in my never

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own Netflix's _Julie and the Phantoms_.
> 
> This fic came about because I needed yet another escape from the election stress of the Longest Week in November (or November the 3rd Parts 1-????). Julie and Luke are almost like the "comfort food" of couple pairings for me because you know from every time they interact that the chemistry between them means more than just bandmate compatibility. They _get_ each other, if you know what I'm sayin'. And I like to explore that in different ways in fics. I hope this brings comfort or joy or just a little "squee" of delight for someone out there.
> 
> The title comes from lyrics in the song "My Never" by Blue October.

Luke had never been a romantic, but you couldn’t have told that through the lyrics in his songs.

It was something that Julie never failed to tease him about.

“Ugh,” she said as she leaned over to peek over his shoulder at his precious notebook, something he had once valued more than his life (ironic, he knew), “too flowery. Are you writing a Hallmark card or something?”

If Luke could have blushed, his cheeks would probably have been painted with splotches of red. But even so he ducked his head to hide his face. “I don’t make fun of _your_ lyrics,” he muttered, the pencil so tight in his hand that with a corporeal body he might have cracked it in two.

Instead of looking offended or miffed, Julie ended up grinning as she pulled back in her seat. “Wanna know my secret?”

Luke looked up, his eyes tensing as he saw that playful smile play about Julie’s lips. “I’m listening,” he said, slowly, a tiny bit fearful that she might actually make fun of him even more. Luke may have played a suave game in front of groupies at a performance, but he remembered the bite of grade-school crushes where girls laughed at him more than they shot him coy smiles.

“I can’t overdo it when I’m writing a song,” Julie said, “because I’ve never been in love.”

If it had been any other girl, Luke might have taken those words as an opening to flirt. _”Oh, really? How about we try to change that right now?”_ But that was one thing the band of Sunset Curve had always excelled at: their flirting games were not exactly top-notch, even for wannabe rock stars. And they had gotten even _worse_ in their ghostly afterlives.

But Julie wasn’t a regular girl. She was a friend, a bandmate, a confidante, a fellow songwriter. And he could see that the admission had taken something out of her, that a bit of shyness had crept into her eyes and her smile. That change alone alerted something in Luke’s brain, because Julie was no shrinking wallflower: she was usually as bold as a rainbow cutting through the clouds after a thunderstorm.

It obviously had taken some courage to be as open with him as she had dared.

Because there was that accord between Julie and Luke: they understood each other best because the both of them hid their hearts in the guise of song.

A small smile came to Luke’s lips. “Come on, Julie,” he said, teasing her in just the same way she often did to him. If she had been one of the guys, he might have jostled her shoulder with his, but there were boundaries there that he did not want to cross, ghost or no. “You can’t tell me you’ve never looked at a guy and thought he was your Prince Charming.”

At first, Luke thought it was just an innocuous comment, a flippant remark, but he knew he had made a mistake when he saw Julie’s eyes flash. There was that boldness, loud and apparent. “Girls don’t look for _Prince Charmings_ ; they look for boys who can make them smile, who make their hearts beat faster.”

Luke chewed on his bottom lip and debated whether to apologize - or change the subject entirely. It was a split second decision whether to be a coward or not. He decided to go with his gut. “Is it really that simple?” he wondered aloud. “I thought handsome looks figured in there somewhere.”

That comment earned him a small shift, the barest hint of the return of Julie’s smile. That was one small grace: Luke had a personal talent and penchant for helping her smile when it didn’t seem possible otherwise. “Well, looks can figure in there,” Julie said, “at least a tiny bit.”

“So then what’s the magic sauce?” When Julie’s brow furrowed in confusion, Luke clarified, “What’s the special ingredient that makes a guy irresistible?”

A smooth talker of a guy might have said, _”What makes a guy irresistible to_ you _?”_ But Luke was better with song lyrics than wit or quips.

Julie’s look turned shy again, as if she hesitated to share what was really on her mind. Finally, she just said, “I think all girls just want to be understood for who they are first and foremost.”

 _I understand you._ The thought came unbidden, like a leaf on the breeze, and Luke was startled by the strength and velocity of it. He wasn’t like Julie because he _had_ fallen in love before because his heart was sometimes just like an open door. But Julie and his heart were not supposed to mix, not now or ever.

He was a damn _ghost_ , for God’s sake.

The frenzy in his thoughts was silenced before he could voice any of that cacophony. Instead, all he could muster was, “Doesn’t everyone want to be understood?”

Julie frowned at that, as if the turn in the conversation was not one that she had expected. “I would assume so,” she said, her voice soft and slow. “I mean, who goes through life just wanting to go by unnoticed and unloved?”

Another boy might have taken that opening, again, but Luke had moments where he was just a tad too oblivious - too lost in his head to notice the cues around him. Instead of answering Julie straightaway, he took up his pen again. “Hold that thought. I think there’s a song there.”

A startled laugh bubbled out of Julie’s mouth. “Are you serious?”

Luke grinned at Julie. Girls who wanted to be understood, boys who wanted to wear their hearts open to the world, love that might be able to transcend the unfathomable gap between life and death…

Perhaps Luke wasn’t as oblivious and short-sighted as he tried to lead people to believe.

His pen flew in a flurry across the page as he scribbled down thoughts.

“Forget muses,” Luke said, his eyes only for the page at that moment. “I have Julie Molina on my side.”

What Luke failed to notice was the darkening in Julie’s cheeks or the way her eyes gleamed as she watched him work his craft of lyricism.

It would be a while before they were on the same page with themselves and these stirring emotions between them.


End file.
